Grade 7 Cross Curricular Project - Mining


Driving Question: You are opening a new mining company. You have to raise the required funds to open and decide where to have your mines located.  

Driving Question: You are opening a new mining company. You have to raise the required funds to open and decide where to have your mines located and what different materials are being mined. 

 

What are you mining? 

 

Where do you find it? 

 

What countries/types of government do you need to deal with? 

Science 7 

Math 7 

Tasks 

EC7.1 - Analyze societal and environmental impacts of historical and current catastrophical geological events, and scientific understanding of movements and forces within the Earth’s crust. 

SS7.5 Expand and demonstrate an understanding of transformations (translations, rotations, and reflections) of 2-D shapes in all four quadrants of the Cartesian plane. 

Geological phenomena – volcanoes, earthquakes, mountain building 

 

Layer of Earth – crust, upper mantle, lower mantle, core, inner core 

 

Vocabulary – fold, fault, converge, diverge, plate boundary, tectonics, plates, geological, theory, composition, transformation, tsunami, eruption, chronological 

 

Tools – seismograph Mercalli intensity scale, Richter Magnitude Scale 

 

How to interpret data to identify patterns and trends 

Know 

 

Geological phenomena – volcanoes, earthquakes, mountain building 

 

Layer of Earth – crust, upper mantle, lower mantle, core, inner core 

 

Vocabulary – fold, fault, converge, diverge, plate boundary, tectonics, plates, geological, theory, composition, transformation, tsunami, eruption, chronological 

 

Tools – seismograph Mercalli intensity scale, Richter Magnitude Scale 

 

How to interpret data to identify patterns and trends 

 

Understand  

 

· That a transformation on a 2-D shape must be applied to every point on the 2-D shape.  

 

· Transformations in the form of translations, rotations, and reflections move the 2-D shape and may change it’s orientation, but the shape and size of the 2-D shape does not change.  

 

· Different transformations can be used to change a 2-D shape to a particular image.  

 

· The transformation applied to the vertices of a 2-D shape impacts each vertex in the same way.  

 

· If the vertices of a 2-D shape are transformed, they can be connected in the same order as they were in the original shape to get the transformed image of the shape.  

 

· A transformation describes horizontal and vertical movements of a 2-D shape.  

 

· It is necessary to have a convention for describing transformational and positional change (e.g., horizontal, vertical). 

 

Students will be able to: 

 

Trace development of plate tectonic theory as an explanation of movement of lithosphere (base on new geological evidence) 

 

Explore movement at plate boundaries 

 

Provide examples of past theories and ideas (incl. cultural mythology) that explain geological phenomena 

 

Construct a visual representation of composition of Earth 

 

Create models or simulations of process of mountain formation and fold, faulting 

 

Describe societal and environmental impacts of catastrophic geological events 

 

Predict impacts of future geological events 

 

Work cooperatively to research geological events and integrate into a chronological model or time scale of major events in geological history 

 

Organize data on distribution (geographical and chronological) of earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions to determine trends 

 

Explain the operation of tools scientists use to measure and describe effects of catastrophic geological events 

 

Provide examples of how science and technology affect self and community (understanding, predicting and minimizing effects of events) 

Be Able to Do  

 

· Carry out transformations (translations, reflections and rotations) on a Cartesian plane.  

 

· Write the coordinates of the image of a 2-D shape after a transformation of that shape has been completed.  

 

· Given two 2-D shapes, describe transformations that could be used to take one shape to the other and vice versa. 

Students choose any 5 of the following: 

 

Trace development of plate tectonic theory as an explanation of movement of lithosphere (base on new geological evidence) 

 

Explore movement at plate boundaries 

 

Provide examples of past theories and ideas (incl. cultural mythology) that explain geological phenomena 

 

Construct a visual representation of composition of Earth 

 

Create models or simulations of process of mountain formation and fold, faulting 

 

Describe societal and environmental impacts of catastrophic geological events 

 

Predict impacts of future geological events 

 

Work cooperatively to research geological events and integrate into a chronological model or time scale of major events in geological history 

 

Organize data on distribution (geographical and chronological) of earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions to determine trends 

 

Explain the operation of tools scientists use to measure and describe effects of catastrophic geological events 

 

Provide examples of how science and technology affect self and community (understanding, predicting and minimizing effects of events) 

EC7.2 Identify locations and processes used to extract Earth’s geological resources and examine the impacts of those locations and processes on society and the environment. 

 

SP7.3 Demonstrate an understanding of theoretical and Experimental probabilities for two independent events where the combined sample space has 36 or fewer elements. 

 

 

Students need to know: 

How to classify rocks and minerals (1) 

Where minerals are located in Saskatchewan (2) 

How minerals are mined in Saskatchewan (2) 

What technologies are used in mining (3) 

Canadian contributions to mining (3,4, 6) 

What we use minerals for (5) 

 

Understand  

· The difference between theoretical and experimental probability and how they are related.  

· Just because an element is in the sample space does not guarantee that it will ever occur.  

· Why a theoretical probability of two independent events involves the multiplication of the two individual theoretical probabilities.  

· Why an experimental probability may never equal the theoretical probability. Why a high probability does not guarantee a particular outcome will happen or why a low probability does not guarantee that a particular outcome will not happen. Be  

Students research and show evidence of: 

 

How to classify rocks and minerals (1) 

Where minerals are located in Saskatchewan (2) 

How minerals are mined in Saskatchewan (2) 

What technologies are used in mining (3) 

Canadian contributions to mining (3,4, 6) 

What we use minerals for (5) 

 

Students will be able to: 

-Identify questions to investigate about minerals/mining (1,2,3,4,5,6) 

-Distinguish between and classify rocks and minerals (1) 

-Identify locations of minerals and their primary uses (2) 

-Relate processes of mining to each type of mineral (2, 3, 4) 

-Provide examples of technologies (3) 

-Evaluate different mining approaches (4) 

-Provide examples of Canadian contributions and careers (6) 

-Identify uses for minerals (5) 

-Suggest solutions to mining issues (4) 

 

Able to Do  

· Determine the theoretical probability for two independent events (with up to 36 possible outcomes).  

· Design and carry out (with and without technology) experiments to determine the experimental probability of two independent events (with up to 36 possible outcomes).  

· Represent the sample space for two independent events. · Rewrite probabilities as percents, fractions, or decimals.  

· Solve problems involving the probability of two independent events.  

· Identify events that are independent. 

· A probability can be expressed as a fraction, decimal or percent and that any of the three formats represents the same likelihood or chance of the outcome occurring.  

· Probability is a measure of likelihood and not of actuality.  

· What makes two events independent. · Explain why the total of the probabilities for all possible outcomes must be 100%. 

 

Students choose any 5 of the following: 

 

  1. Identify questions to investigate about minerals/mining (1,2,3,4,5,6) 

  1. Distinguish between and classify rocks and minerals (1) 

  1. Identify locations of minerals and their primary uses (2) 

  1. Relate processes of mining to each type of mineral (2, 3, 4) 

  1. Provide examples of technologies (3) 

  1. Evaluate different mining approaches (4) 

  1. Provide examples of Canadian contributions and careers (6) 

  1. Identify uses for minerals (5) 

  1. Suggest solutions to mining issues (4) 

 

EC7.3 Investigate the characteristics and formation of the surface geology of Saskatchewan, including soil, and identify correlations between surface geology and past, present, and possible future land uses. 

 

 

Students will know: 

-three main types of rocks (1) 

-rock cycle (2) 

-fossil record provides evidence of geological history (3) 

-soil is formed by many processes (4) 

-weathering and erosion differ (5) 

-soil can be classified (6) 

-environmental consequences of land practices (7) 

 

 

 

Students will be able to: 

- construct a visual representation of the rock cycle and types of rocks (1, 2) 

- explain how scientists use the fossil record (3) 

-develop and use a classification key for rocks (1) 

-describe examples of weathering and erosion (4, 5) 

-document local surface features (5) 

-collect local soil and classify it (6) 

-identify predominant soil types (6) 

-assess environmental impacts (7) 

 

 

 

 

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